One of the unique characteristics
of Paul Cuffee Schools is its Maritime theme.
Nowhere is it more evident than In Mr. Beal’s classroom. The first thing
that catches your eye as you walk in is an immense model of a naval ship in
the center of the classroom, atop a table with engineering plans and all types of naval
tools that I can’t even begin to describe. Amazingly, this ship is just a model
of what the students will be producing after weeks of careful calculations and
planning, in their 9th grade
Algebra class. As you may have already
guessed, he is a former Naval Captain who runs his classroom like a tight ship.
He meets and greets all of his students at the threshold, as is the school’s
custom. On the wall, next to the door, is a lantern that seems to have come
directly from a naval ship. As the students settle in, the lamp shines green
but as soon as the bell rings, he switches the color of the lamp to red,
indicating that all eyes should be on him and that all talking should cease.
The
desks are all arranged in a circle around the massive workbench that bares the
weight of the model ship. At the head of that table is one chair, reserved for
the Captain, of course. From his position, at the head of the “Ship” he orders
team captains to approach his table for further instructions. The classroom is
broken down into several groups and within each group, each student is assigned
a different task. Some of the titles I heard being thrown around were captain, navigator,
and quarter-master. Today’s assignment involves the use of polynomial equations
to calculate fuel burn during a round-trip between ports given a specific ship
and set of conditions. Once the team captains give their team the green light,
they begin to work around the classroom analyzing charts and weather forecasts
at different stations, reporting back to their group where further calculations
are made.
At
the end of the day, the team captain is graded by the teacher, and the team
captain is responsible for grading each student in his or her group. No
homework is assigned in this class other than to show up prepared to work for
the full length of the class period. Anyone needing to leave the room is
required to take a hall pass and those entering late are brought up to speed by
their team captains who are the only ones allowed to approach the teacher with
questions.
The school itself has a policy in place. If a student is having trouble staying focused and just needs a moment to gather him or herself, the student has the option of "tabbing out". The student goes to a predesignated partnering classroom where they are required to fill out a form that helps the student identify the problem and suggest possible solutions. Upon returning to the class, the teacher reviews the form and together they decide if the student is ready to return to class. However, if the student needs more time away from class, he or she is escorted to the refocus room by a staff member working Behavior Back-up. Those staff members are trained and experienced in dealing with students in crisis. Their mission is to help the student make the transition back into the classroom as soon and as smoothly as possible so that the loss of instruction is limited.
None of those behaviors occurred in this classroom because, in
essence, there is a clear chain of command. Mr. Beal spends less time redirecting and managing
behaviors because his team captains are required to keep their teams on task at
all times. It was like watching a well-oiled machine in action.
